


Heartstring

by ANannyMouse



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Gen, Luka Gets Akumatized, Misunderstandings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-11
Updated: 2018-06-11
Packaged: 2019-05-21 00:33:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14905133
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ANannyMouse/pseuds/ANannyMouse
Summary: Marinette gets some closure, Luka hears something is isn't meant to hear, and Hawkmoth would've gotten away with it (if not for those meddling kids).





	Heartstring

Luka’s ideal afternoon didn’t consist of consoling his little sister after she got turned into a supervillain, but hey, it was kind of inevitable with Hawkmoth terrorizing Paris day and night. Still, Luka couldn’t help but feel helpless listening to her sadly recount her story, clutching a pillow to her chest. 

“I just...when I heard Hawkmoth’s voice, I knew what was happening, I knew that I shouldn’t listen, but I didn’t care. The thought of revenge sounded so good that I didn’t resist at all,” she sniffled.

“That’s how it happens with everyone who gets akumatized. Nobody is in their right mind when it happens,” Luka replied, rubbing her shoulder.

“Still, I should have done something. I made myself an easy victim for Hawkmoth.”

“It’s not your fault you got akumatized, Juleka. It happens to everyone.”

“You haven’t been akumatized yet,” Juleka countered.

Luka smirked. “Well, obviously it’s because I’m just so awesome, Hawkmoth knows he can’t handle me. Seriously, though,” he added, the smile dropping off his face, “it’s probably just a matter of time.”

Really, Luka was sure the reason he had avoided akumatization for so long was his easy-going nature and the mundanity of his life. Nothing exceptional ever happened to him, nor anything awful; every bad situation he came across was easily smoothed over. Despite his sister and mother both facing the receiving end of one of Hawk Moth’s butterflies, Luka had still stayed in the clear. He was just painfully ordinary. Even after Juleka managed to recover from the guilt of the Reflekta incident and more akumas crawled out of the woodwork to wreak havoc in Paris, Luka remained as ordinary as possible, considering the circumstances. 

And then, one day, he met Marinette, and his life went from ordinary to fantastic. Marinette was kind and brave, and talented to boot. Seriously, how many girls could pick a lock with just a Jagged Stone guitar pick? Her passion for design was admirable, and her fashion creations were something out of a dream. The cool face Luka put on wouldn’t have revealed it, but he found himself falling head over heels for Marinette. The two spent more and more time together, and Luka found himself noticing all her quirks and habits, all the things that made her wonderfully, indisputably…Marinette. 

The days spent with Marinette were the most carefree Luka had ever known. Even the butterflies he felt in his stomach whenever he was around Marinette were a small price to pay for the joy their interactions brought. They went to concerts Luka found, or went on walks around the park, equipped with boxes of pastries from Marinette’s bakery.

Sometimes the two would just hang out at Luka’s place as he polished off a new song, or in Marinette’s attic bedroom as she sketched out designs. 

Luka couldn’t help but feel delighted every time he remembered one such day he had spent with Marinette, him idly strumming the guitar he had brought to her house as she flipped through a sketchbook. Marinette had seemed rather jittery that day, and Luka couldn’t help but notice. When she made eye contact with Luka and spontaneously dropped her sketchbook, he figured it was time to ask about it.

Marinette jumped and produced something from behind her back. “Um, well, since you gave me that Jagged Stone guitar pick a while ago, I figured I’d do something to return the favor…it’s okay if you don’t like it or something, I mean, it’s pretty dumb-,”

Luka picked up the object resting on her palm and Marinette immediately silenced, anxiously gauging his reaction. It was a bracelet; at first glance, it appeared to be very simple, with large beads strung on a leather cord. Another look, however, revealed each bead to be decorated with a small design, from a meticulously drawn guitar to a miniscule Jagged Stone logo.  
“Wow, Marinette, did you draw all these yourself?” Luka gazed at the bracelet in amazement. 

Marinette flushed and nodded.

“This is totally amazing,” Luka said as he tied the bracelet around his wrist. “I hope you weren’t attached to this thing, because I’m never taking it off.”

“T-t-that’s good!” Marinette chirped, her voice about 12 octaves higher, and Luka couldn’t help but smirk. No matter how much time went by, he couldn’t help but find Marinette’s small flustered spells funny. It was just another thing that he loved about her. 

Alright, so maybe Luka and Marinette weren’t dating, but they weren’t exactly not dating either. Every interaction they had was full of nervous touches and unsaid words, the air thick with thoughts the two weren’t brave enough to express. Which is why Luka found himself walking to Marinette’s school, with the plan of asking her out properly. He had wimped out too many times, and it was time for him to finally take the initiative!

Students milled around the school as the echoes of the final bell faded, but Marinette was nowhere to be seen. Luka frowned. It had taken him long enough to build up the courage to ask Marinette out–if he didn’t find her soon, his resolve would completely crumble. Making eye contact with Marinette’s friend–Alya, he remembers, the one with enough guts to match Marinette’s courage–he made his way over to her. “Do you know where I can find Marinette?”

Alya gave a knowing smile. “She’s still inside. I think she had to talk to Adrien about something, but she should be done by now.” She playfully shoved his shoulder. “Go get her, tiger.”

Luka’s cheeks tinged with pink, and he nodded. Making his way through the empty halls, he peeked through classroom windows in hopes of finding Marinette. Finally, he began hearing a faint voice echoing through the hall. Increasing his pace to a light jog, he followed the voice to the classroom where it lead. As he expected, it was Marinette’s voice he heard. Taking a deep breath, he braced himself and reached for the door. 

“-what I’m saying, Adrien, is that I’ve liked you for ages, and it’s about time I told you about it…”

Luka paused, his hand centimeters from the knob. Jerking his hand away as if burned, he swiveled on his heel and walked down the way he had come as quickly as he could. Thankfully, Alya was gone by the time he emerged from the building. Luka didn’t think he would be able to withstand a round of questioning from her. As soon as he was out of he school building, Luka broke into a run.

Finally arriving home after what felt like years, Luka collapsed onto his bed and let the tears he had been holding in flow down his cheek, fingering the beads on the bracelet Marinette gave him. Had he really been imagining everything he thought there was between him and Marinette? Suddenly, the beads of the bracelet felt like poison rather than a comfort. Luka gripped the bracelet and began tearing it from his wrist, oblivious to the dark butterfly settling on trinket.

“Tired of being strung along by those you trust, deprived of love while those around you feel the joy that is kept out of your reach…Heartstring, I can help you curb your frustrations and free you from the emotions that taunt you at every corner, and all I need are Ladybug and Chat Noir’s miraculous’ in return...”

 

“-what I’m saying, Adrien, is that I’ve liked you for ages, and it’s about time I told you about it. I know that you don’t return my feelings, and I’m not asking you to…I just wanted you to know. I’ve found someone else I like, and he likes me back, so I just wanted to get this off my chest so I could pursue him openly.”

Adrien blinked a few times in stunned silence. When Marinette had asked to speak with him after school, this wasn’t what he had expected. Finally, he found his tongue and managed to stammer out, “Marinette, that was- I mean, wow, that was really brave of you to say. I don’t think I’d ever have the courage to spill my guts like that. I’d still like to stay friends with you…if you’re comfortable with it, that is.”

Marinette smiled–a genuine, happy smile, not the smiles that came from her mortified laughter after she embarrassed herself in front of Adrien. “I’d love that.”

“In that case, I wish you luck with Luka.”

Marinette flushed bright pink. “Whaaat? Luka? No way, it’s totally not-,” Marinette slumped when she saw Adrien’s raised eyebrows. “Okay, yes, it’s Luka. How did you know? Am I really that transparent?”

“It’s obvious how much you two like each other. Even I can see it, and seeing as I was too dense to pick up your crush on me, that’s saying a lot.” Adrien put a comforting hand on Marinette’s shoulder. “Seriously, you should go for it. You two are great together.”

Marinette’s gaze didn’t move from the ground, but her lips quirked up. “Thanks, Adrien.”

“What are friends for? Now, we should get back out there so you can find Luka and sweep him off his feet.”

Marinette gave Adrien’s shoulder a shove and started walking. “You don’t have to make fun of me about it.”

“I’m not making fun of you!” Adrien protested, “I honestly think that once you get out that door, you should find Luka and confess to him. You two have been dancing around each other for ages.”

“I’ll think about it,” Marinette sighed, “but you should know by now I’m not great at taking action quickly.”

Adrien opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted by the muffled sound of panicked screaming in the distance. He tensed and glanced at Marinette. “Do you think it’s…”

“An akuma.” Marinette nodded, shifting her stance as if preparing to head into battle. “Uh, I should get to the bakery–you know, my parents could be in trouble-”

“Yeah, I should check on my dad and Nathalie- “

“I’m sure Ladybug will show up to contain the situation- “

“Chat Noir will probably be here really soon-”

With those parting words, both teens turned and ran as fast as they could in opposite directions.

 

Ladybug swung down to the ground and surveyed the scene. Much of the screaming had seemed to come from the direction of the park, but the scene before her was the perfect picture of a peaceful sunny day. Birds chirping, couples laying on blankets, and no screams to be heard.

Chat Noir landed beside her and frowned. “This is seriously weird.”

“What do you mean? It’s perfectly peaceful, no signs of an akuma anywhere.”

“That’s just it. A beautiful spring day like this? Kids should be running around everywhere, making a ruckus. Look at them, though,” Chat said, gesturing to the children in the park. They were all either ambling slowly on footpaths or sitting much too calmly for children their age. They looked almost zombie-like. 

As she looked around the park for any explanations, Ladybug’s eyes caught on something more shocking than any number of silent children. “Is that…Chloe Bourgeois? Lying on the ground?”

“Are you kidding, my Lady? Chloe would never do anything to mess up her a-purr-ance.”

Ladybug gestured to where Chloe was splayed out on a path, dejected gaze cast toward the sky, all of her colors more muted than usual. Even her canary yellow jacket had turned into more of a mustard color. Ladybug slowly made her way over to the girl, yo-yo swinging in anticipation of a trap. When no attack came, however, she dropped it and poked Chloe’s shoulder. “Chloe? Are you alright? What happened?”

Chloe sighed. “Some freak with a guitar pulled out my heart,” she replied, voice flat, as if this was just a mild inconvenience.

Chat Noir gaped. “Are you serious?”

“I know, right? He made such an ugly hole in my shirt doing it.” Chloe pulled her jacket aside to reveal a gaping void where her heart should have been. Chat Noir and Ladybug both stifled gasps, but Chloe’s expression remained unchanged. 

“The akuma must remove people’s hearts, and their emotions with it.” Ladybug raised herself from the ground. “We have to find it quickly.”

Chat Noir nodded and scooped Chloe up from the ground, setting her down on a bench. “It feels wrong to just leave her on the ground, y’know?”

Not really, Ladybug thought, but just threw her yoyo towards the nearest roof.

 

The scene in the center of town wasn’t much better. The citizens of Paris stumbled around in a lethargic haze, all sporting matching holes in their chests. Finally, Ladybug’s eyes focused on a bright shock of blue amongst the crowd of grey. “There! That must be our guy! He even has a guitar, just like Chloe said. That must be where the akuma is.”

Chat Noir grinned and propelled himself towards the villain, Ladybug following.

Ladybug swung herself towards the epicenter of activity as quickly as she could, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to stop the villain from doing more harm at the rate she was going at. She could only watch as the he struck a chord on his guitar, causing the strings to stretch out into a fleeing civilian’s chest and pulling out a glowing mass. Ladybug felt sick as she realized that he had just removed the civilian’s heart. Luckily for Ladybug’s stomach, the “heart” seemed more a cartoonish approximation of the organ as opposed to a true-to-life model. 

As the villain turned to face another victim, Ladybug dove and pulled him out of the way into a side street. “Run away as fast as you can,” she ordered, and he had no problem with complying. She prepared to get back to the battle, but was stopped by a hand to her shoulder. Standing behind her was Juleka, with a demeanor even more lethargic than it was on an ordinary day and a hole in her chest. “Ladybug…please try to be careful when fighting him…”

“Of course I will be.” Why did Juleka care so much about this akuma in particular? The only people she was so protective of were Rose and…

Oh.

“This akuma…is it your brother?” she asked, Juleka nodded. 

“Alright,” Ladybug gave her best don’t-worry-citizen-I-definitely-know-what-I’m-doing smile. “I’ll get him back to you safe and sound, don’t worry.”

Peeking out from behind the alley, Ladybug couldn’t believe she hadn’t noticed the resemblance to Luka earlier. His hair and face looked exactly the same, and he wasn’t even wearing a mask, eyes instead surrounded by red rings as if swollen by tears. As he turned slightly and she got a better look at his face, however, his eyes were completely different from those that Ladybug was familiar with. Instead of the patient kindness that she was so familiar with, they instead held a latent fury that chilled her to the bone. 

Ladybug managed to tear her eyes away as she spotted Chat Noir perched on a roof, baton in hand and a questioning look on his face. Ladybug managed to slink away from the alley without drawing Luka’s attention to join him on the rooftop. 

“That alleyway must have been pretty interesting,” Chat Noir remarked with a smirk. “You’re usually the one scolding me for stalling before a fight.”

“I found out the identity of the akuma,” Ladybug replied, tone clipped. “It’s Luka Couffaine, Juleka’s brother.”

Chat Noir raised his eyebrows. “Guess that completes the family set, huh?”

Ladybug sighed and rolled her eyes. “Let’s just find a way to nab that guitar and get rid of the akuma.”

Her eyes caught on Luka, who it seemed had found another victim. As he prepared to strum his guitar, Ladybug threw her yo-yo and swung over, kicking the guitar out his hands. Chat Noir jumped down from the rooftop, smashing the guitar with his baton. “Show’s over, Luka!”  
Luka sneered. “My name isn’t Luka! I’m Heartstring now!”

“Not for long, you aren’t,” replied Ladybug, yo-yo ready to de-evilize the akuma. But as the seconds ticked by, no butterflies were to be seen.

“What?” Where was the akuma? They had broken his guitar, hadn’t they?

Chat Noir grimaced. “His akuma must be somewhere else, though…without knowing how he was akumatized, though, we have no idea what it could be. I say we try to get him talking.”

“Sounds good to me. At least he’s less dangerous without his guitar.” Ladybug hefted her yo-yo, but before she could throw it, Heartstring made a clenched his fist and pulled it toward his chest, as if pulling something. Upon closer inspection, it seemed to be a mass of translucent strings. Ladybug gingerly touched one, but her finger simply passed through. But then, if its purpose wasn’t to trap her and Chat Noir, then what…?

“My Lady?” Chat Noir gulped and pointed behind them. “I think you spoke too soon.”

Ladybug let out a squeak of surprise. The strange strings were all connected to the voids embedded in the heartless citizens, pulling them towards the two heroes like a horde of zombies. More of them spilled through side streets, all lumbering towards Ladybug and Chat Noir. Ladybug groaned and grappled her way to the nearest rooftop. “Can’t we just get an easy akuma for once?”

“I ask myself that every day,” Chat Noir responded wryly. “Do you have any idea where his akuma is?”

Ladybug shook her head. Despite her knowledge that Luka was the one who had been akumatized, she had no clue where the akuma could have manifested. Hell, she didn’t even know why he had been akumatized!

“You can’t keep avoiding me, Ladybug,” Heartstring crowed. “Even you can’t keep your heart safe forever!”

“Why are you even doing this?” yelled Ladybug, gritting her teeth.

“I’ve been strung along and played for a fool for far too long. If I can’t feel love, why should anyone else? If I can’t keep my heart from breaking, why should I have to sit back and watch everyone else fall in love?” 

“You dummy!” cried a disembodied voice, and Ladybug couldn’t even bring herself to be surprised when Alya popped up from behind a car, phone in hand. “Marinette’s crazy about you! You’re totally nuts if you think she’d just ditch you for someone else out of the blue.”

Heartstring’s face pinched. “What would you know? You weren’t there when my heart was so mercilessly crushed! You didn’t hear what I heard!” With that, he thrust his hand in Alya’s direction, the horde following.

Ladybug yanked Alya up to the roof before the horde of heartless citizens could overtake her. “How long have you been here?”

“Basically since the attack began,” replied Alya, phone aimed at Ladybug for a few seconds before returning to the scene on the ground. “Why?”

“Do you have any clue why Heartstring was akumatized? It would really help me and Chat Noir in finding his akuma.”

Alya sighed and shook her head. “Honestly, I don’t get it myself. Luka seemed super chill last time I saw him, and then suddenly, boom, he’s akumatized! It makes zero sense. He’s been ranting about this whole time, so it’s gotta have something to do with Marinette, but she’d never do anything to break his heart.” She shrugged. “Your guess is good as mine, Ladybug.”

Ladybug frowned. She and Luka hadn’t even talked for the entire day, so what could she have done? All she had done all day was go to school and talk to Adrien-

Oh no. Oh no no no no. If Luka overheard her conversation with Adrien and misunderstood…it would definitely explain the sudden akumatization. But in that case, his akuma had to connect to her in some way, right? 

Suddenly, it clicked. Something to connect her to Luka, that followed his theme of threads…a quick survey of Heartstring’s arms confirmed that he was indeed wearing the bracelet she had given him. 

“What about one of his bracelets?” she asked Alya, trying her best to appear clueless. 

Alya smacked her forehead. “Of course! I remember seeing some project Marinette was working on–she painting these beads for a bracelet, and whenever I asked her about it, she got totally flustered. It was pretty funny actually…anyway, though, that bracelet was totally for Luka! If there’s anything on him for an akuma to possess, that’s it.”

Ladybug nodded and turned to Chat Noir. “You got that?”

He nodded. “Loud and clear, my Lady.”

Ladybug threw her hand in the air. “Lucky Charm!”

“A fishing rod?” Chat Noir wasn’t very impressed. “If you wanted one so bad, I could’ve just brought one from home, Bugaboo. That one doesn’t even have a line!”

“I didn’t take you for the fishing type,” Ladybug chuckled.

“Hey, what’s a cat without a fish to snack on?”

Ladybug searched her surroundings for a plan. “That’s it! Mind holding my fishing rod for a second, kitty?”

“Anything for you, my Lady,” Chat Noir said, grabbing the pole from her.

Ladybug aimed and flung her yo-yo at the broken guitar lying on the pavement, pulling it up onto the roof. Heartstring watched with a pinched face. “No matter how long you try to stall up there, it won’t change what’s going to happen! Hand over your miraculous’ now, and it’ll be easier for you.”

“Not a chance,” Ladybug shouted down in reply, fiddling with the string of the guitar.

“You should probably try to hurry that up, Ladybug. Heartstring’s probably sent some of his zombies into the building; we don’t know how quickly they’ll be able to get to the roof,” Alya warned. Ladybug nodded and picked up her pace. 

“Fishing rod,” Ladybug called to Chat Noir, snapping her fingers. Once it was in her hands, she threaded the guitar strings she tied together through it. “Now just one last thing…Alya, do you have a paper clip, by any chance?”

Alya dug through her pockets. “This one’s kind of bent out of shape, is that okay?” 

Ladybug grinned. “Perfect.” 

She quickly tied the bent paper clip to the end of the string. Creation completed, she handed the rod over to Chat Noir. “I’m going to distract Heartstring. Once you have an opening, aim for that bracelet, alright?”

Chat Noir nodded. “Good luck down there.”

Ladybug leapt down from the building in front of Heartstring. Alya’s suspicion was right; most of the zombies had been cleared from the area, and the door to the building they had been hiding out on was hanging off its hinges. Ladybug hoped the zombies had lost their ability to run as well as their hearts. Either way, she had to hurry and get on with her plan. Standing up straight, she placed a confident hand on her hip and idly bounced her yo-yo. “You want my miraculous so bad, Heartstring? Come and get it!”

Heartstring smirked and pulled his fist towards his chest. Within seconds, the heartless citizens were pouring out the doorway of the building towards Ladybug. “Get her miraculous!” shouted Heartstring, pointing an accusing finger towards Ladybug.

That was the opening she was looking for. Quick as lightning, Ladybug threw her yo-yo at his wrist, keeping it in place. “Now, Chat Noir!”

Before Heartstring could react, the improvised fishing line flew towards his wrist, hooking onto the bracelet and pulling at the string until it snapped. The familiar black butterfly flew from the broken bracelet, and Ladybug couldn’t help but give a sigh of relief before swinging her yo-yo at it and giving her familiar cry of, “Time to de-evilize!” 

As she waved goodbye to the butterfly, she took her fishing rod from the approaching Chat Noir and threw it into the air, watching the swarm of ladybugs return the color to the horde of civilians around her and repairing all the damage caused by Heartstring. Her eyes trailed on Luka, whose baffled expression carried none of the hatred shown by Heartstring. “What…where am I?”

Ladybug quickly pounded her fist against Chat Noir’s and gestured towards Luka. “Can you take him home? I have something I need to take care of.” 

Chat Noir nodded and gave an exaggerated bow. “Can do, my Lady.”

Ladybug smiled and waved goodbye as she yo-yoed her way home. She had quite a lot to do.

 

Marinette yelped as her fingers made contact with a burning hot pie tin. Tikki fluttered over her shoulder, tutting at Marinette’s clumsiness. “I told you a million times to throw out those old oven mitts. They’re so full of holes, it’s a wonder they haven’t fallen apart already!”

“Sorry, Tikki, I guess my mind just isn’t totally here right now,” Marinette dolefully replied, pulling the small pie out of the oven with a more functional pair of mitts.

Tikki’s expression softened and she gave her master a comforting bump on the arm. “I’m sure Luka will love your pie, Marinette, and I know he’ll understand the situation once you explain it. He’s always so careful to listen to everything you say.”

Marinette leaned onto the countertop, gazing into the tart as if it held the answers to all of life’s mysteries. “I know, I just…I feel so bad for making him so upset that he’d become one of Hawkmoth’s victims, even if it is just a misunderstanding.”

“There’s nothing you could’ve done, Marinette. Hawkmoth feeds on every bit of misery he can find in Paris. You couldn’t keep Luka safe forever.”

“I guess you’re right, Tikki,” Marinette relented with a small twitch of her lips, “Like you always are.”

“Of course I am,” giggled Tikki. “Now, get out there and find Luka, or you’ll have burned your hands on that pie for nothing!”

“You’re right! I just need to find the box for the pie…where did I put it…?”

Tikki sighed and shook her head. “It’s next to the pie, Marinette.”

“Hahaha, I totally knew that! Just testing your reflexes!” Marinette squeaked, placing the pie in the box and throwing off her apron. “Alright, time to head out! Wish me luck, Tikki.”

Marinette opened the bakery door, mentally tracing over the route to Luka’s houseboat (or at least, where Juleka claimed it was anchored at the moment), only to be faced with…Luka himself. Marinette gave a small shriek of surprise a threw the pie box up in the air, Luka catching it right before it hit the ground and handing it back to her.

“Sorry about appearing out of the blue. I didn’t mean to scare you,” Luka said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. 

“Oh, no, it’s fine, you just caught me by surprise, that’s all!” Marinette tried to assure him, but Luka didn’t look convinced.

“Well, I just wanted to come by to apologize for what I did earlier today. I’m not usually like that when I’m let down, and I really shouldn’t have let Hawkmoth’s akuma take over me like that. I…I wish you luck with Adrien, and I’ll try my best to support you.”

Luka turned to leave, but Marinette caught his wrist in an iron grip. “Luka, listen to me! When you showed up, I was just about to visit you to explain what you must have overheard. Yes, I was telling Adrien about the feelings I used to have for him, but I also told him that I was just confessing them to him for closure, because I’d found another boy who was also handsome and kind and caring who actually returned my feelings, and I wanted to pursue him without being bogged down by my feelings for Adrien.”

Luka flushed, his gaze captured by the determined look on Marinette’s face. Seconds of silence passed by, and Marinette realized she was just standing there, gazing into Luka’s eyes and holding his hand. She let go of his hand and instead presented the pie box to him. “So, um, if you’d like to, maybe we could go inside and share this? I made it to apologize for the misunderstanding, and, you know, sweets are always nicer shared…”

Luka intertwined his and Marinette’s hands, smile bright enough to blind the sun. “I’d love that.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fanfic for the ML fandom, and Luka has such little screentime in the show so I have no idea how well I wrote him >.>
> 
> anyway, I hope y'all enjoyed this! it's unbeta'd for the most part, so please point out any errors you see so i can fix them.


End file.
